Virtual borders could soon be at all Dubai airports

Latest project targets zero human contact at Dubai’s borders

By
Tim Skinner
11 October 2017

Dubai is aspiring to create a completely, 100 percent virtual border at its airports, it has been announced.

Major General Obaid Mehayer bin Suroor Alhameeri, deputy director-general of Dubai’s Directorate General for Residency & Foreign Affairs said the emirate is looking to create and implement an entirely virtual border, where there is no need for human contact in the airport experience.

Now, Dubai is seeking a tight balance between security, speed and quality of service at its airports, including DXB and Al Maktoum International, so that 2020’s expected passenger footfall of 124 million passengers can be managed without huge crowds and queues.

To help set the foundation, DXB has been trialling an automated pre-clearance service, which Alhameeri said has gone a long way towards helping the airport and its staff appropriately deal with the added pressure of increasing passengers, while reducing waiting times for passengers.

“We need to find alternative ways to handle border security procedures where speedier transactions are a priority,” he said.

T3 is undergoing some huge renovations as part of some extensive and ambitious plans to transform the airport in to the world’s most technologically advanced. It could soon be about to get a lot cooler.